Bridgestone investigate tyre failures
Bridgestone have launched an immediate investigation into the tyre failure that cost Valentino Rossi dearly in Assen on Saturday.
The Ducati rider had been fighting with Nicky Hayden and Hector Barbera for fifth place when he suddenly slowed before entering the pits.
The Italian had a new rear tyre put on his bike as the old one was missing chucks.
Rossi returned to the action and finished a valiant 13th, one lap down on race winner Casey Stoner.
"We had a big problem with the tyre about eleven laps from the end," he said.
"I had to return to the garage to change it because it was impossible to continue, so I started again with the soft and finished the race. We'll try again next week at the Sachsenring."
Bridgestone have launched an investigation into the Italian's tyres woes.
"Unfortunately a few riders experienced a problem with their rear tyre today and we sincerely apologise to those riders affected," said Bridgestone's Shinichi Yamashita.
"We have commenced a full investigation into the matter and I will personally take the affected tyres back to Bridgestone's Technical Centre in Japan where they will undergo detailed analysis to determine the cause of this issue."
Rossi, though, was not the only rider to have tyre issues with Yamaha's Ben Spies, who finished fourth, revealing that a "chunk came out of the tyre" putting paid to his attempts to fight for a podium result.
